Here’s a question for environmentally-friendly folk – are you aware of the numerous and diverse eco opportunities for children in education? If you’re interested in helping your local nursery, school or college to raise funds, improve their outdoor space or support their students’ wellbeing through nature connection, please read on.
Educational settings missing eco opportunities
When volunteering for Dunnington Green Initiatives Group within my local community, I’ve had the impression that information about the support available to educational settings wanting to up their eco game doesn’t always reach its target. To be fair, teachers and parents have a lot to juggle and those offering opportunities may be focused on other issues and often operate outside the learning and teaching network. Add information overload on the internet to the mix and it can be difficult to see the Woodland Trust funding for the trees!
I’d love to be able to direct you to a swish, user-friendly, comprehensive and up-to-date database of eco opportunities for educational settings with advanced search functions but, so far as I know, no such hub exists. However, I can humbly offer a basic 11-page table of information about offers of funding, support and learning resources made freely available on Dunnington GIG’s Facebook page with announcements on updates in the comments.
The resource may lack sophistication, but I hope it’s a fairly solid starting point. If you’re keen enough to send an enthusiastic request to GIG’s e-mail address, you can bag your own pdf to peruse.
Opportunities for every educational setting
Most of the eco opportunities for the benefit of children in education listed in GIG’s ‘Eco for Ed’ table are available nationwide. The resource is intended to help anyone interested in inspiring their local nursery, school or college to engage in environmentally friendly activities; that extends beyond teachers and pupils to parents, guardians, PTA members and school governors and perhaps associated organisations (such as the Church of England) and local authorities.
At present the table isn’t focused on further education but some of the providers listed do offer opportunities to universities and some ideas could be replicated on campus, so lecturers and students could use the list for inspiration. Some items may also be of interest to home educators, private tutors and those running kids’ clubs. While many activities are aimed at younger children, you’ll find opportunities for all ages; from crayoning creatures to conservation careers advice.
Most importantly, with a variety of commitment levels and timings there should be something to fit every action-packed calendar; from ad hoc activities to accreditation schemes.
Assistance across all areas
Of course, curriculum-linked learning resources are a key feature but there may be some surprising opportunities in GIG’s ‘Eco for Ed’ table. How about Buzz Club’s citizen science involving monitoring rat-tailed maggots (babies of pollinating hoverflies with snorkels at their rear end)? Perhaps you’d prefer an eco musical from Anneliese Emmans Dean’s The Big Buzz. Fancy some owl pellet dissection kits from Raptor Aid? Maybe you’d rather a writing competition for the Young Batty Laureate Award.
Inspirational project ideas for PTAs include raising funds through a recycling scheme with Terracycle, earning rewards made from recycled waste with MYgroup, running a uniform bank or a book swap or a fundraising preloved non-uniform day.
There are also offers for staff training and support on sustainability issues such as energy efficiency and waste management.
Nature connection for wellbeing
We’ve all read worrying statistics on declining mental health, including among our youth, and we know eco-anxiety forms a part of that picture. On a more positive note, there is increasing evidence that nature can provide some solace.
In a survey by Natural England 85% of children and young people agreed that being in nature made them very happy and 83% wanted to do more to look after the environment. Providing a dose of Vitamin N to boost children’s wellbeing is at the heart of many opportunities listed in GIG’s ‘Eco for Ed’ table. A good example is the upcoming Hope Week (starting 6 November) organised by the Wildlife Trusts.
Your local school or nursery can connect with nature outdoors
However limited your local school’s outdoor provision, pupils can make a positive impact. All outdoor areas can be made more wildlife-friendly – ask the British Hedgehog Preservation Society about their ‘Hedgehog Friendly Campus’ programme and Bumblebee Conservation Trust about their ‘Bumblebee Friendly Schools’. Just one request, please avoid plastic lawns – according to Jack Wallington, aside from overheating there are numerous environmental concerns and there are alternative adjustments for accessibility and softer play surfaces.
As we’re entering tree planting season, it’s worth highlighting the amazing free tree opportunities for educational settings. The Woodland Trust’s free tree packs can be ordered for delivery in March and they’re celebrating 15 years of the Green Tree Schools Award! The Tree Council offers free trees via a Young Tree Champions programme, Branching Out grants and their ‘Orchards for Schools’ project. TCV’s I Dig Trees includes fruit trees for primary schools and Earthwatch Education could help create a trendy tiny forest.
If your setting finds the prospect of tree planting unsettling, they could reach out to a local eco group. In my area Treemendous York have helped local schools and nurseries with tree planting projects. Last word on this, please give your young trees TLC, especially through dry spells.
Green means go!
Hopefully, this article has provided a flavour of what you can find in Dunnington Green Initiative Group’s ‘Eco for Ed’ table. I’d love GIG’s resource to be a launchpad for nurseries nurturing nature with bee-friendly blossom trees and hedgehog highways, preschool power for pollinators, primary school pupils taking positive action on air pollution and secondary schools going solar. The eco opportunities for educational settings are waiting … Let’s help our children become a #ForceForNature. Green means go!
